Oklahoma’s chief school official has ordered all state schools to include the Bible in their curriculum immediately. This decision has sparked outrage and threats of lawsuits. The state was recently criticized for attempting to use taxpayer money to create a Catholic school.
Republican school superintendent Ryan Walters announced that from grades 5 through 12, schools must use the Bible and the Ten Commandments as teaching materials. He claims the Bible is historically significant and a cornerstone of Western civilization.
Walters emphasized that every classroom will have a Bible and every teacher will teach from it. The Bible will be used to study history, ethics, and religion, and its influence on the nation’s founders and Constitution will be highlighted.
The directive is mandatory and requires immediate compliance. Walters stated that Oklahoma students will learn the importance of the Bible and the Ten Commandments in Western civilization, despite opposition from the left.
This order was issued shortly after the state’s highest court blocked the creation of a publicly funded religious charter school, calling it a violation of the First Amendment, which prohibits government endorsement of religion.
Americans United for Separation of Church, which had sued to stop the religious school, has threatened to sue again over this Bible requirement. The group’s CEO, Rachel Laser, argued that public schools are not meant for religious instruction and accused Walters of trying to indoctrinate students with Christian nationalism.
The group is also involved in a federal lawsuit in Louisiana to block the requirement of the Ten Commandments in public classrooms.